Hi! I miss you!

Hi friends & family. I miss you all fiercely, really. It's wonderful here; the weather is chilly, the community has taken me in, and I'm beginning to learn the roads (I can here Mom's, Lindsay and Kellie's sarcastic remarks all the way up here already). But even still, it's so strange not only not being with you, but being so far. I'm doing okay with that reality as of now, but I fear in the coming weeks that reality will be a bit more challenging to carry around.

My internship has started, and I am eager to get more involved! I sense I will be learned lots of invaluable skills and information, and get to photograph often.

My apartment is darling, and my roommate is wonderful. Her name is Jenn, and she makes the best baked goods in town. Don't be surprised if I come back to Florida a little overweight.

Matt has been pretty sick the last few days, so we've been taking it easy. Pray for him. He rarely gets ill, and is ready to be well again.

I will be posting pictures soon. I figure it's the closet thing to getting you show my life here. It's supposed to snow twice this week, too. Oh, and the low on Thursday is predicted to be...

11 FREAKING degrees! I'm going to die. Really. Sigh.

Well, I will keep you all updated as much as possible. I don't like how impersonal blogs can be, but it's the best way to keep everyone I know and love updated on my life while I am away.

I love you all so so much. Be well!

May the peace of Christ be with you,
Casey

EDIT:
I also want to start a "Tennessee Moment" series with this blog. So to kick it off, here is my favorite "Tennessee Moment" thus far.

Matt, his friend Josh and myself go to a pawn shop that Matt goes to shop for old records occasionally. I'm informed this pawn shop is called "Bill's." That should have been my first clue. It looks like a typical pawn shop, but then I look to the other wall to find it adorned with guns, guns, and more guns. Surprised, and a bit afraid, I convince myself this is normal. Well we're browsing around and good ol' Bill comes over, and start to chat. He's very friendly, and his thick southern accent reminds me yet again, I'm in a totally different world. He then starts telling us stories he has experienced through running this pawn shop. So while his bearded, gauged eared, younger employee smokes inside the facility, Bill starts to entertain us with his experiences: the deaf lady and her husband Carlos with the Elvis photo, sketchy people who he wouldn't sell guns to the got angry, but by far my favorite was the one where he shot himself in the hand. An old widow had called him a few years back saying her husband has some guns she would like to sell, and asked if he could come over. He agreed, and come upon a room with dozens, and dozens of guns. Well, he comes across one that was particularly interesting. It was clearly old, and had a look to it which was unfamiliar to him. As he picks it up and yes, fires the trigger, he wonders why nothing happened. Again, her tries again. Nothing. Well, that is when he discovers a strange button on top of the gun which he for some reason though it was good idea to push, which he did, and the gun fire a bullet into his hand. So the widow is screaming believing that she has been shot, while Bill bleeds everywhere asking her to dial 911. And what is his moral of the story? "Don't press strange buttons on dem guns."

Ah, Tennessee.